


5 times the Walking Dead characters met before

by Folqueraine



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Gen, Hershel breeds pigs, Pre-Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-24
Updated: 2014-10-24
Packaged: 2018-02-22 10:48:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 775
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2505101
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Folqueraine/pseuds/Folqueraine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>~~5~~ ha ha who am I fooling, I'll never finish this<br/>1 vignette that takes place before the show. What if the characters' path had crossed before?</p>
            </blockquote>





	5 times the Walking Dead characters met before

10 years before  
Georgia-Carolina Border County fair

"Daddy?"  
Daryl didn't pay attention to the child standing near him. Merle was late and Daryl--Daryl was bored. The cowgirls were nice to look at, but--  
"Daddy?" Someone tugged at his jeans. Daryl had to look down. The little girl had the fairest blond hair he'd ever seen and couldn't be older than, what, five? He didn't know many kids.  
The girl looked at him with red, tearful eyes. Daryl tried to shrug her off, but she held fast.  
"'m not your daddy, girl, let me go." He searched for his brother's unmistakable head, but was distracted by a little hand tugging harder.  
"But I've lost my daddy..."  
"And I don't know who your daddy is. What do you want?"  
"My name's Bethany."  
She looked up at him expectantly. Why? Why him? Had someone pinned a "kid-friendly" sign on his back?  
"Daryl."  
"My Daddy has grey hair and he has no hair in the front. Help me find him. Please?" She slipped her hand in his and tugged. Daryl sighed.  
"Why me?"  
"Daddy said to ask a grown-up if I get lost."  
Daryl looked around. They were surrounded by adults, most of which looked way more family-friendly than him.  
"Ok, here's what we'll do. I'll take you to the podium over there and the man is going to call for your dad in his microphone, ok? Do you know his real name? Your family name?"  
"Greene like the color but with an e at the end," she recited by heart. "We have a pig exhibition."  
"Do you?"  
They made their way towards the podium through the crowd. Daryl looked around for a sign or a stall about pigs. He didn't see one, but he saw an grey-haired older man with a benevolent grandfather look nearby.  
"Excuse-me, is this your girl?"  
The man interrupted his conversation with a woman and looked down at the girl.  
"Why, I've never seen this young lady."  
"This isn't my daddy. Daddy doesn't have a beard. I could have told you that."  
The man crouched to be at the same eye level.  
"Hello there, young miss. My name's Dale. Did you get lost?"  
There, Daryl thought. Why hadn't she gone to the old man in the first place?  
"I'm Bethany Greene with an e and my daddy has a pig exhibition."  
"Well, now that you've mentioned it, I remember seeing the Greene stall. We're not very far, actually. How about I walk you there, uh?"  
The kid nodded enthusiastically and Daryl extricated his hand from the girl's. He was taking his leave when he heard a girl's shrill voice.  
"Beth! For Christ's sake, I was so worried!"  
A teenage girl - a really cute brunette with green eyes and cowboy boots - was squeezing the little blonde. There, family reunited, mission accomplished. Daryl moved away. If Merle found out about it, he'd never hear the end of it.

Maggie took her sister's face in her hands.  
"I told you to wait by the door! I was inside a minute and you were gone!"  
Beth's eyes filled with tears again.  
"I'm sorry Maggie."  
"Oh, don't cry please, it's okay, I was just scared is all. Thank you, sir."  
"Oh, I didn't find this young lady, she was with a younger man..." A look of puzzlement fleeted on Dale's face as he couldn't find the other man. "Well, looks like he's gone. He was a young, biker type. Too bad."  
"If Beth sees him she'll tell me. Thanks anyway. Come on, Beth, let's go find Dad."

It was evening and many fair-goers had left the grounds, which were now littered and muddy. Daryl was sitting down with Merle and his friends, a bottle of beer in one hand and a biker chick on his lap. Merle's leftover, not that he minded.  
A flash of blond caught his eye in the distance. A family were making their way out of the fair, and the little girl was walking hand in hand with the brunette teen. She stopped and looked his way as if she'd know he was looking at her, waving like crazy when she saw him. She didn't stop until he acknowledged her gesture by lifting his bottle.  
The brunette pulled her hand and the girl - Beth - pointing at him, telling her something. The sister waved once and the family disappeared in the sunset.  
"What are you looking at?" the girl on his lap - Caitlinn - asked, twisting around to try and get a look.  
"Nothin', jus' a pretty girl."  
"Prettier than me?"  
"Younger too."  
Caitlinn shoved at him playfully. Daryl pretended she was the reason he smiled.


End file.
